Dose changes may spur falls

Seniors have a fivefold increased risk of falling in the days right after a dosage change of certain antidepressants, a study finds.

Caregivers should carefully monitor residents whose doctors have prescribed, or increased the dosage of, non-SSRI (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor) antidepressants, according to researchers from a Harvard Medical School affiliate. They looked at 1,181 Boston-area nursing home residents who had fallen and compared the frequency of antidepressant changes one to seven days before a fall, versus eight to 14 days prior to a fall. The study was published in the Journal of Gerontology: Medical Sciences.

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